To The Land of Nevernight

On the sixth day of August, the emperor visited the Yamen of the Ministry of Industry in person.

Yuan Mu, Shangshu of the Ministry of Industry, Li Yude, the left servant, and Tang Shen, the right servant, greeted him.

When everyone came to the backyard of the Yamen of the Ministry of Industry, they saw that a tall brocade shed had already been built in the spacious courtyard.Under the brocade shed made of bright yellow brocade, there is a three-house-sized, completely black strange object. If you look around, it occupies two-thirds of the entire courtyard.

On the top of this thing is a draft chimney, and on both sides stand overseeing officials and working artisans.

"Is this the cage you mentioned?" Zhao Fu pointed to the cage and asked Tang Shen.

Tang Shen: "Your Majesty's words are correct. Please look here."

Everyone followed Tang Shen to the huge dark cage.Tang Shen said: "This is for adding coal to the cage, and this is the vent. Because the temperature inside the cage is extremely high, a cooling device is installed." Tang Shen said a lot, Zhao Fu didn't understand, but Also feel novel.They followed the order Tang Shen explained to the end.

Yuan Mu said: "This thing is a blacksmith's furnace for blacksmiths to forge iron."

Ji Mengwen on the side said: "Master Shangshu is right. This is the blacksmith's furnace commonly used by ordinary blacksmiths. Here is the anvil used by blacksmiths to forge iron. The effect of the cage is not visible to the naked eye, so we need to borrow other tools to show it. make it work."

Li Yude, the left servant, said: "I see that this blacksmith's furnace is different from ordinary ones. Look at the hammer, why is there something hanging from the other side of the cage. If you want to forge iron, did you find a blacksmith today? I don't know I haven't seen the head of the Ministry of Finance."

Tang Shen: "When the cage is opened, Lord Zuo Shilang will know."

The emperor became even more curious about the cage.

Seeing this, Tang Shen didn't delay any longer, he winked at Ji Mengwen, and Ji Mengwen immediately summoned the craftsmen to open the cage.

Several craftsmen got the order, immediately lifted the lid of the coal, and threw a large piece of coal into the furnace with a shovel.The temperature inside the cage rose sharply, and the air formed a distortion visible to the naked eye.Tang Shen led Zhao Fu back to the gate of the courtyard and watched from afar.

Those craftsmen wiped the sweat from their foreheads, while carefully monitoring the temperature and heat transpiration inside the cage, on the other hand, they had to pay attention to controlling the heat dissipation and the confidentiality of the gas.

Yes, the so-called cage box is exactly the steam engine of the Song Dynasty.

Two years ago, Tang Shen asked Yao San to find a large number of coal mines in Liao, and brought back a lot of coal.Today's Liao State occupies a vast area and a vast territory. Several large coal mines that are famous in later generations are all within the territory of Liao State.After getting some raw materials, Tang Shen started to let craftsmen try to make steam engines in Tang's workshop early on.

In later generations, any junior high school student will know the beginning of the first industrial revolution, which started with the invention of the Watt steam engine.

Every industrial revolution is a revolution in productivity.

The principle of the steam engine is actually not difficult. It is to use steam to drive the machine instead of traditional manpower or even natural forces such as water power.But it's easier said than done.

Tang Shen was an orthodox engineering man in his previous life, but this does not mean that he can directly build a steam engine at the current level of productivity.Not to mention the steam engine, he can't even make a simple version of the steam device!So before he took over the handicraft department and established the renovation department, the steam engine of Tang's workshop had been stuck in a bottleneck for a long time.

It wasn't until Tang Shen was promoted to the right servant of the Ministry of Industry, got the help of Zhao Fu and the entire Song Dynasty, and cooperated with the best craftsmen in the world to create the current cage.

Tang Shen knew the emperor too well, what Zhao Fu needed was not those exaggerated and high-sounding explanations, but a real example that he could see and make him feel that this matter would make his name last forever.

So he and Ji Mengwen tried their best to connect the blacksmith stove to the cage.

Tang Shen's eyes were solemn, and he looked seriously and solemnly at the huge black machine under the sun.

There was only a sharp whistling sound, followed by rumbling metal impacts.The sound was like thunder, and it exploded in the courtyard, startling everyone.The eunuch Ji Fu immediately stretched out his arms and stopped in front of Zhao Fu: "Guard, guard!"

Yuan Mu and Li Yude were also frightened.

Tang Shen bowed and said, "Your Majesty, the cage is indeed a little noisy when it is activated, but the minister and craftsmen have already tested it many times, and the safety can be guaranteed."

Zhao Fu is also not an ordinary emperor. He was just taken aback at first, but now after hearing Tang Shen's words, he pushed away Ji Fu who was standing in front of him, and said softly, "I see, Jing Ze, your cage is really good!" It took me by surprise.”

The cage was still rumbling, but Zhao Fu didn't pay much attention to it, and the rest had no choice but to bite the bullet and watch in the yard.

I saw five craftsmen constantly checking every part of the cage and adding coal to the cage from time to time.In order to dissipate heat, a chimney at the top of the cage exhausts a large amount of hot air.Seeing this, Tang Shen sighed inwardly.These are all energy losses, but in today's situation, craftsmen can only do so much.

About a quarter of an hour later, with the deafening sound of the cage, in the blacksmith's furnace at the end, the hammer hanging on the cage suddenly moved.

Zhao Fu was watching quietly, when he saw this scene suddenly, he was dumbfounded.

Yuan Mu, Li Yude and others on the side also opened their eyes wide in horror.

The hammer first moved slightly, then suddenly it drew a semicircular arc in the air, then hit the anvil heavily, and began to strike iron.

Bang bang bang!

The hammer smashed down on the anvil, smashing the red-hot iron block prepared by the craftsman into long flat strips.If you observe carefully, you will find that the strength of the hammer is different at the beginning, but gradually, it starts to strike the iron at almost the same angle and with the same strength.

The red-hot iron was crushed more and more flat. Tang Shen gave an order, and the craftsmen immediately stopped adding fuel to the cage.

Ji Mengwen brought over the flattened iron sheet and presented it to the emperor.

The iron sheet has long since cooled, revealing a dark color.Zhao Fu stretched out his hand to caress this small piece of iron, and suddenly he raised his head, his gaze was like a falcon, and he looked at Tang Shen sharply: "This is like the wooden utensil of the public transport pan in the rumor, you only need to press it A button can move the whole body with one hair."

According to legend, Gong Shupan, the originator of carpentry, is also known as Lu Ban. The woodwork he made can trigger everything by moving only one mechanism.

There were also organ masters in the Song Dynasty, and the Ministry of Industry had several.But both they and Tang Shen know that energy is conserved.There is no mechanism in the world that can forge an iron forge with a single touch.

Tang Shen said: "The wooden utensils of the Gongshu Pan are only in the legend, but the cage is standing right in front of His Majesty."

Zhao Fu: "This cage can be used to forge iron. I have seen it. But it seems to me that it is quite troublesome. It only takes two people to forge iron. Using a cage to do it, five craftsmen will be wasted."

Tang Shen replied neither humble nor overbearing: "Using the cage to strike iron is just to let His Majesty know what the cage is for. The cage is like a craftsman who will never get tired. Blacksmithing is just a small function. The power of the steam used in the cage , far more than just blacksmithing."

"What else can you do?" Zhao Fu's voice suddenly rushed.

Tang Shen looked up at him with solemn eyes: "Even the minister dare not predict this matter."

On the same day, Zhao Fu summoned the four ministers of Qinzheng Palace and all senior officials above the second rank to visit the cages in the yamen of the Ministry of Industry.

The emperor is not sure.He vaguely noticed that this "little" cage didn't seem simple, like the tip of an iceberg, hiding unpredictable power.But he can't see it now, maybe he is destined to not have a few more years of life, and he can't see it anymore.

Xu Wei, Wang Quan, Chen Linghai, Geng Shaoyun... all the senior officials of the Song Dynasty saw the cage one by one.

As Tang Shen said the night before, Wang Qin will also see the cage.

When Wang Qin saw the cage, he was instantly awed by the bulky and tall iron lump.Seeing his shocked expression, Wang Quan, the right minister, teased, "Zifeng, do you understand what this cage is for?"

Wang Qin's lips moved, and after a while, he said: "No." His tone was hesitant.

Wang Quan: "Then why do you have such an expression?"

Wang Qin: "I understand, but Jing Ze's intentions at this moment."

That night, high-ranking officials wrote to the Chuigong Hall one after another, expressing their opinions on the cage.

Xu Wei, Chen Linghai, Meng Lang and the others didn't say a word to the cage, they really didn't understand the purpose of this thing.Wang Quan, Wang Qin and others supported Tang Shen unconditionally, and wrote to ask the emperor to allow the Ministry of Reform to build more cages.

Among them, Yuan Mu, Shangshu of the Ministry of Industry, wrote a ten-thousand-character memorial, which was submitted to the court the next morning.

He didn't sleep all night.

Yuan Mu was the No. 21 in the first emperor's time. In the [-]st year of Kaiping, he was appointed Minister of the Ministry of Industry by Zhao Fu.

Zhao Fu never appoints officials according to their aptitude.Just like Tang Shen, the reason why he became the right servant of the Ministry of Industry was not because Zhao Fu discovered that he had the talent to be an official of the Ministry of Industry, but because Su Wenyun happened to be promoted to the Qinzheng Palace to be a political advisor, leaving the position of the right servant of the Ministry of Industry vacant. out.The Ministry of Industry is an idle yamen with little power and is restricted by many ministries.Tang Shen wanted to be promoted to a third-rank official, so it would be perfect to be the right servant of the Ministry of Industry. This is a transitional position with a name but no power.

Yuan Mu was not a scholar of the Gong family, but after he became the Minister of the Ministry of Industry, he began to study a lot of books of the Gong family.

So he sat in the official position of Shangshu of the Ministry of Industry for 15 years.The rest of the officials of the Ministry of Industry have been changed, and Yuan Mu is still the Minister of the Ministry of Industry.He is a conservative official, he has never had a brilliant political opinion, and he is dedicated to guarding the yamen of the Ministry of Industry.But he also really became an official of the Ministry of Industry.

Yuan Mu wrote a letter asking the emperor to build a cage.

Perhaps it was the ten thousand character memorial that moved the emperor, or perhaps Zhao Fu believed in the hidden destiny, so he immediately issued an order to order the Ministry of Households and the Ministry of Rites to cooperate with the Ministry of Industry to vigorously develop cages.

In the immortal platform, Zhao Fu was wearing a Taoist robe and sitting cross-legged in the middle of the hall.

In front of him are nine ever-burning lamps.The evening wind blows into the hall, and the white gauze in the hall is blown to float and move, like a fairyland.

Under the leadership of Ji Fu, Tang Shen entered Dengxiantai.

Zhao Fu closed his eyes and was still cultivating immortality.Tang Shen didn't make a sound, just waited quietly at the side.After about a quarter of an hour, Zhao Fu opened his eyes.He let out a foul breath slowly, and looked up at Tang Shen.Those vicissitudes and tired eyes stared at Tang Shen for a long time, Zhao Fu suddenly raised his hand.Tang Shen was startled, before he could react, he saw Zhao Fu push forward with his palm, and then stopped.

Zhao Fu sighed leisurely: "Jing Ze, look at me, I have been cultivating immortals for more than [-] years, and I can't turn off lights with my hands. But your cage can strike iron out of thin air. I have cultivated immortals for so many years, You are actually not as good as you, why on earth are you looking for immortals and Taoism, what exactly is it that I am looking for!"

Ever since Tang Shen became the right servant of the Ministry of Industry, it has been a long time since Zhao Fu asked this kind of proposition.He lowered his head to hide his expression, pondered for a moment, and said: "Ordinary people cultivate immortality in order to live forever. I am bold, please forgive me, so that I dare to speak freely."

"Haha, when have you been so cautious, speak freely!"

"Yes. I believe that your majesty's cultivation of immortals is not like ordinary people, only for life and death. What your majesty cultivates is the sincerity in the heart, the fearlessness in the heart, the admiration and solemnity of the heaven, the earth and the gods. Ordinary people often say that the grace of incense burns , the common people enshrine gods and Buddhas, but if it is said that the true belief in their hearts is the untraceable gods and Buddhas, it is His Majesty who has blessed all people and made the world peaceful!"

Zhao Fu was slightly stunned.

Tang Shen said more and more smoothly: "Your Majesty's cultivation of immortality is for the sake of the people of the world, and it is for the belief and admiration of all people, to cultivate immortality. Your Majesty just said that you want to put out the lamp with your palm. The so-called extinguish the lamp with your palm is just what your majesty has in mind." It’s just an appearance.” Tang Shen raised his head, his eyes were hot and sincere, and suddenly burned Zhao Fu’s hypocritical heart.

Tang Shen said his sincere words word by word: "Your Majesty's thoughts are beyond your power, but your heart wants to do it, and you want to be a great event for all people in the world and for the common people. What you should do. What you are cultivating is not a fairy, but a great merit for thousands of generations!"

After the words fell, Tang Shen bowed deeply to the ground.

Zhao Fu stared at him blankly. After a long time, the corners of his mouth moved, and his voice was calm: "I've heard it in my heart."

Tang Shen's eyes turned slightly, but he still bowed without saying a word.

After leaving Dengxiantai, Tang Shen wiped the sweat from his hands and finally heaved a sigh of relief.However, although he was relieved, his expression became more serious.

What he said to Zhao Fu just now was [-]% false and [-]% sincere.

What is Zhao Fu cultivating immortality for?

For immortality, of course.

But Zhao Fu didn't know that there is no immortality in this world.If he really believed it, he would not have summoned the good listening monk into the palace two years ago, and found a random reason to execute him.

Zhao Fu has the false face that all the emperors in the world have, but he also has what many emperors don't have, the great perseverance and determination that want to do practical things out of vanity, but have actually done practical things.

After Tang Shen left, he climbed to the Immortal Terrace, Zhao Fu did not practice immortality anymore.He sat cross-legged in the hall and meditated, staring at the gossip array on the ground in a daze.

"My heart is for the people of the world, for all generations?"

"Even I believe it myself."

In the empty palace, the emperor's self-deprecating words were as cold as the cool breeze in a summer night, but he shut his mouth again.After a long time, he said with a smile: "In the court, I'm afraid there is only this sincere and hot heart left."

The imperial edict to expand the Ministry of Construction and Reform was passed to the Ministry of Industry within a few days, followed by the news that Yu Chaosheng, the Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment and the deputy commander of the Yinyin Division, returned to Beijing.

When Yu Chaosheng left Beijing, he followed an army of [-] with great momentum.When he returned to Beijing, the [-] army was still in the northwest, but he still attracted the attention of hundreds of officials because he brought back four criminal officials.

Yu Chaosheng: "The director of Yinyin Yinzheng Xuanzheng Wang Xiao, the principal Mei Shengze, Youzhou Feiqi Lieutenant Liang Jiao, and Qian Wei. First imprison these four people in the prison of the Ministry of Criminal Justice, and make arrangements after I report to the Holy Spirit."

"Yes."

The news that Yu Chaosheng brought four criminal officials back to Beijing spread throughout Shengjing overnight.

That night, Yu Chaosheng visited his mentor Xu Wei.The teacher and the student had a long talk and stayed up all night.

On the second day, Yu Chaosheng wrote a note and sent it up.All officials' papers had to be approved by the Palace of Qinzheng before they could be sent to the emperor.Now the person in charge of reviewing the memorials of the second-rank officials is Youcheng Geng Shaoyun.Geng Shaoyun does not belong to the Xu Party, nor the Royal Party, he is the emperor's confidant.

Holding Yu Chaosheng's memorial, Geng Xiang felt troubled and hesitated.

In the end, he still handed over the notebook and sent it to the emperor's table.

Zhao Fu was considered a wise gentleman, and he would read the important memorials sent by the Palace of Qinzheng every day as soon as possible.Now after he opened the memorial, his eyebrows moved and his expression was erratic.

According to Yu Chaosheng's memorial, Wang Xiao, Mei Shengze and other officials from Youzhou were whereabouts strangely, and there seemed to be secret movements.

Of course the emperor knew how these four people moved erratically and what was going on secretly.These four people are all spies that Su Wenyun and Tang Shen personally placed in Liao Kingdom and Youzhou to seek Liao!

Zhao Fu put the booklet on the table, and didn't say he summoned Yu Chaosheng to tell him the truth, nor ordered him to let the four go.The emperor pondered for a long time, and he always felt that Yu Xianzhi didn't seem like a person who, just for such a trivial matter, mobilized a large number of people to tie up the four court officials to Shengjing and put them in the prison of the Ministry of Criminal Justice.

"What's behind it?"

Yu Chaosheng, like his mentor Xu Wei, has always acted meticulously, not seeking to be quick, but to leave no legacy.

He did not directly report to the emperor, saying that the four monks, the monk Shu Youpushe and Yin Yinsi commander Wang Qin, had a close relationship, because he still wanted to observe how much the emperor knew about it.

After Zhao Fu read his memorial, he didn't say a word in the morning, as if he had never seen the memorial.

Yu Chaosheng immediately understood: the emperor knew about this!

How much does the emperor know?Could it be that the relationship between Wang Qin and these four people, and Wang Qin's deployment in the Northwest and the Liao Kingdom were all ordered by the emperor?

In Zuo Xiang's mansion, Yu Chaosheng thought over and over again, and said: "The students feel that Wang Zifeng should not be involved in this matter. The Holy Majesty has great trust in Wang Zifeng, but the Holy Majesty is suspicious by nature and does not like the arbitrariness of ministers. You don't need to say, sir. You have always taught Xianzhi that you need to be measured when you are an official. The former Zuo Xiang Ji Weng Ji, Ji Xiang is in control of the power, but he has never done what Wang Zifeng is doing now. Student I think that what Ji Xiang did is the limit that the Holy Majesty can tolerate, and Wang Zifeng has already crossed the limit at this moment."

Xu Wei smiled slightly, took a sip of tea, and said, "That's right. Since that's the case, how do you plan to do it?"

Yu Chaosheng thought for a while: "Since we want to be an enemy of Wang Zifeng, we should do it more decisively. If we don't kill him with one blow, we will have endless troubles when Wang Zifeng comes back. The students plan to interrogate the four people first, so they must be judged by the Holy Majesty." Read Wang Zifeng's book carefully in front of him, so that he can't stand up."

Yu Chaosheng's behavior can deceive many people, but he can't deceive the right minister Wang Quan.

After Wang Quan left the court, he immediately found his nephew and said, "You can still laugh? You know that Yu Chaosheng has already written a seal and sent it to the Chuigong Palace for the Holy Majesty to see! You are not afraid of him." Randomly arrange you in the memorial?"

Wang Qin waved a white brocade folding fan, and said with a smile, "Has your uncle seen that memorial?"

Wang Quan was blinded by him, and his tone was slightly unfriendly: "Of course not. It is Prime Minister Geng's job to review the memorial. I am just as friendly as Geng Xiang. How can I know what is written in the memorial."

"What's the rush?"

"you……!"

Wang Quan was so angry at his nephew, but Wang Qin stretched out his fan and said, "Uncle, don't worry so much. If you are worried now, what should you do in the future? Your Majesty is the memorial that he saw yesterday. But I was not sent to him this morning, so I must not have been mentioned in the notebook."

Wang Quan thought for a while: "What you said is not unreasonable, but how do you know that if Yu Chaosheng didn't talk about you yesterday, he won't impeach you directly in the court tomorrow?"

Wang Qin laughed directly, with a smile on his extremely handsome face, and his eyes were shining like stars because of the smile: "Uncle, Feng has always believed that with anyone, you can win every battle if you know the enemy and yourself. Yu Xianzhi and I He is a Jinshi on the same list, since he is on the same list, how can I not pay attention to him? Maybe even he himself does not know, I have noticed him early. Naturally, I have paid attention to all the Jinshi on the same list in Kaiping for 18 years, not only He is one of Yu Xian."

Wang Quan was surprised: "Do you still have time to do such things?"

Wang Qin: "It's just a pastime in spare time. My uncle forgot, but I have a photographic memory."

Wang Quan was noncommittal, even if he had a photographic memory, he would not entertain this kind of thing in his spare time, his nephew is really strange and different.

Wang Qin said with emotion: "I have never regarded Yu Xianzhi as an opponent in my life."

Wang Quan was surprised and said: "I don't know yet, but you are so sympathetic with him?"

"Pity each other?" Wang Qin seemed to have heard some big joke, his eyes widened, he laughed for a while, and then said: "Yu Xianzhi is weak, indecisive, kind and honest! If he worshiped him back then Ji Xiang is my teacher, so I still need to be afraid. But he studied under Xu Xiang. Xu Xiang is even more cautious and hesitant. Why should I regard such a person as my opponent?"

The implication is: Yu Chaosheng can't beat me in his life.

Wang Quan also understood what he meant. Although he didn't quite understand where his nephew got such confidence, he sighed: "I have never seen a bad person scold a good person, saying that a good person is too kind and therefore incompetent. Gao , It’s really high, my Langya Wang family has been around for hundreds of years, and it’s really rich in pearls and jade, scholarly and blessed, I’m afraid it took a hundred years of precipitation to give birth to such a corrupt official and treacherous official like you Wang Zifeng.”

Wang Qin saluted sincerely: "Uncle is too famous."

Wang Quan: "..."

Wang Qin had his own plan in mind, but Tang Shen saw a person who appeared here inappropriately.

Mei Shengze's father came from Beizhili, waited for a day at the gate of the Ministry of Industry, and finally waited for Tang Shen.

When Father Mei saw Tang Shen, he was about to kneel down, but Tang Shen hurriedly supported him.

The old man who was over sixty years old burst into tears and begged: "Master Tang, my lord, please save Lingfu, please save Lingfu!"

The author has something to say: In fact, what Lao Zhao said is true. In the entire court, only our little Tang Lang is a good person in any sense.The so-called thick-faced and dark-hearted, Xiao Tanglang is already thick-skinned, but his heart is not dark enough.

Wang Zifeng: It is enough for me to be black alone. The younger brother is naturally as white as possible. Everywhere is ~white, that's good.

Tang Shen: ...@#[email protected]#%@#%!#! ! !